“I wouldn’t be so sure. I’d still be stuck in a burned-out home in NOLA without you.”
“You would’ve found a way, but I’m glad I could be there for you.”
“Me too.” He nuzzles my beard. “We’re gonna be here a while, right?”
“We sure are.”
He smiles. “Good.”
TWENTY-THREE
ATLAS
I should be exhausted after everything that’s happened in the last twenty-four hours, but instead I feel energized, renewed, like I’ve been freshly carved. Like I did during the nights when we were being held captive, I listen to Rune’s soft, steady breathing and watch the way his eyelids flutter with his dreams. I’m filled with a sense of peace instead of worry now. The threat has passed, my mate is safe, and we have a long life ahead of us. Together. I still have to face Auri though. I’m sure he knows by now that I lied to him and went rogue, but that’s tomorrow’s problem.
When I’m sure Rune is sleeping soundly, I slip out of bed and quietly into the void. The same way Kallis’s magic guided me straight to Rune without me needing to know where I was going, his magic inside me takes me exactly where I want to go, even if I have no clue where I actually am.
I materialize in the middle of a small, modern apartment. It’s in a city, I can see that much from the lights coming in through the windows from the tall buildings around it. Beyond that, it’shard to tell where in the world I am, and it doesn’t really matter. I wanted to go to his most frequented home, and I think I found it based on how lived-in it looks. There’s an open notebook on the coffee table and dishes in the drying rack next to the sink. I was only planning to grab a few of his things and head straight back, but now that I’m here and I can smell how stale the air is, it really hits me that he’s been gone for weeks.
I put a pin in my original plan and step into the small kitchen. I check a couple of cabinets until I find a roll of garbage bags under the sink, along with several bottles of cleaning supplies. A chuckle slips past my lips. It’s odd imagining Rune taking out the garbage or cleaning a toilet. He seems so… ethereal most of the time. A warm feeling spreads through my gut knowing I’ll get to do all these domestic, everyday things with him, that I’ll get to see a side of him he never lets anyone else see.
I whistle to myself as I open his refrigerator and clean out the spoiled food. Once that’s done, I put away the dishes in the drying rack, wash the few things that were left in the sink growing mold, and generally tidy things up around the rest of the apartment. By the time I’m satisfied, the sky is just starting to turn pink with the sunrise outside. Not that that tells me much about how long I’ve been here, since I still don’t know where “here”is. I want to get back to him before he wakes up though, so I hurry to get back to my original task.
I find a suitcase in his closet and pack a few days’ worth of clothes. I remember him waxing poetic about his custom shampoo and conditioner when we were being held captive, so I grab those out of the bathroom. I also pull a couple of notebooks off of his bookshelf, as well as the one on his coffee table, and pack it all into the bag. I don’t want him to feel like I’m moving him in without discussing it, but a few of his things should makehim a little more comfortable, at least until we can decide what we want to do in the long run.
I slip back into the void and right into my bedroom, materializing at the foot of my bed. Rune is still fast asleep, clutching my pillow and snoring softly. The scent of sex lingers in the air from earlier, making a possessive feeling rumble in my chest as I pull back the covers and climb into bed next to him. He stirs just enough to reach for me in his sleep. I swallow down a satisfied growl at the unconscious gesture.
“Mine,” I murmur quietly, nuzzling the top of his head and wrapping my arms around him tightly. And then I finally close my eyes and fall asleep.
RUNE
I’m so usedto waking up already on guard and a little bit anxious that I never even noticed it; it’s just been a normal part of my life. It’s actually a little jarring to wake up feeling relaxed and safe, but I think I might be able to get used to it eventually.
I grin to myself as I stretch and yawn, happy to have the weight of Atlas’s massive arms around me and the warm puff of his breath against the back of my neck. I see my small Gucci suitcase at the foot of the bed, and I huff out a laugh.
“Hm?” Atlas grunts, still half-asleep but already tuned in to my every subtle movement and quiet sound. I know it’s only been twenty-four hours, but having a mate is kind of nice.
“You went and got my stuff?”
He nuzzles the back of my shoulder and nods. “Just a few things. I wanted you to have a change of clothes and a couple of other essentials.”
I open my mouth to thank him, but the words turn into a groan as it hits me how long I’ve been gone.
“Oh my god, that place must be a biohazard by now. Is it even salvageable or am I just going to have to set it on fire to deal with the mold and flies?”
He chuckles. The sound is a deep, warm rumble that reminds me of a bonfire or a cozy blanket wrapped around me on a cold, snowy night. Ugh, am I just going to be sappy like this forever now? I still have a reputation to maintain.
“It wasn’t that bad, and I already took care of it.”
“What?” I wiggle in his arms until he loosens his grip, then I roll to face him. My half-chubbed morning wood drags against his warm, muscular thigh and he engulfs me in his arms again. “You popped out in the middle of the night to clean the rotting food out of my fridge and bring me clothes? How are you so nice? Is it just a ploy to trick me into mating with you?” I tease.
He barks out another laugh and tightens his arms around me, sliding one hand up my back to brace it behind my neck. I happily let him pull me in for a lazy, lingering kiss that makes my heart race and my cock go from half-stiff to fully hard in a matter of seconds.
“There’s no end of things I would do for you, love,” he murmurs against my lips.
Emotion swells in my chest and it hits me all over again that this is real. I don’t think I had time to fully process it yesterday, but I can feel the weight of it now. Atlas and I are bonded, we’re fated, we’re connected on an unbreakable, soul-deep level for the rest of our very long lives. I smile into the kiss and sink against him even more fully.
“I love you,” I whisper, carding my fingers through his beard.
